NEW RELEASES: Mykola Kostiuk on "Time Flies" CD (06/27/99)

NEW RELEASES

Mykola Kostiuk on "Time Flies" CD

by Andrej Busch

RATINGEN-TIEFENBROICH, Germany - Time does fly by, which is why it sometimes is a good idea to stop for a moment and look back. Mykola Kostiuk, my grandfather, is a Ukrainian tenor from Warren, Mich. who is celebrating his 75th birthday on June 26. In honor of this occasion and coinciding with Father's Day, the opportunity arises for me to stop for a moment and appreciate his continuous dedication to Ukrainian folk music, which has resulted in the recording of a second CD.

After the CD "To you, My Halych!" - a compilation of classic Ukrainian folk songs recorded with the Ukrainian National Opera Orchestra in Kyiv and released in 1997 - my grandfather now presents "Time Flies," once again recorded in Kyiv with Irene Dats of the National Opera of Ukraine.

It features a unique collection of traditional Ukrainian folk songs and romances and is, in my opinion, the masterpiece of his musical career. The songs are all sung in Ukrainian and are beautifully accompanied by the musicians of the Ukrainian National Opera Orchestra.

My grandfather was born in Yezupil (now Zhovten) in the Ivano-Frankivsk region of Ukraine. After World War II he dedicated his life to the preservation of traditional Ukrainian culture and music. Despite the struggle of building a new life for himself and his family in the United States, he joined the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus in 1959 and has performed in this as well as in other choirs as a singer and soloist ever since.

He took part in numerous recordings and concert tours throughout Canada, North America and Australia. Finally, as a true patriot, he sang on the historic Black Sea tour of the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus - the first group from outside Ukraine to perform there after independence was regained in 1991.

With this musical maturity he decided to record and produce solo projects on two compact discs and dedicate them to his grandchildren and his wife, Maria Kostiuk, who continues to support him and his work.

Music and song are powerful instruments of communication and for me, born and living in Germany, they are a wonderful way of staying emotionally connected to my grandfather. The albums remind me of my roots and of a man whose persistent belief has rendered great achievements.

Mykola Kostiuk's vocal partner on this album, the soprano Ms. Dats, is a lyric-dramatic soloist of the National Opera of Ukraine in Kyiv and an internationally acclaimed artist known for more than 20 solo parts in Ukrainian and world classics.

The CD may be purchased by calling: (810) 264-0436 (in the U.S.); fax; 0049-2102-447821(in Germany); or e-mailing [email protected]

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